In May, the U.S. Mint informed Congress that the cost of making a penny and a nickel will soon exceed the actual value of each coin. Thanks to the high cost of materials that go into the making of the coins -- zinc, copper and nickel -- the Mint estimates that by the end of the fiscal year, the cost of producing one penny will come to around 1.23 cents, and the cost of making a nickel will be 5.73 cents.